Verdict

We say oddly because shiny MacBook Airs, all netbooks and a host of laptops don't have optical drives anymore. It's doubly odd is there's no explanation of how to set things up without the CD.

That aside, the web interface is a wonderfully corporatised affair lacking almost any colour. Think Netgear with grey-tinted glasses.

But it's cleanly laid out, very fast to use and feature-rich.

Unlike the Asus RT-N56U the Linksys E4200 provides a unified SSID for both 5GHz and 2.4GHz modes, but also allows extensive configuration to enable or disable any frequency range along with 20MHz and 40MHz modes. It can also offer Guest zones for simple public access.

We ran tests at both frequency ranges and were hoping for good results as it's packing a 3x3, 6 antenna configuration. In the same room we got similar performance to the FRITZ!Box 7390 with peaks in the low 20MB/s and a solid average around 18MB/s, but this still lagged the stellar ASUS mid-20MB/s results.

The Cisco box continued to just lag the FRITZ!Box at all distances.

In some ways the 2.4GHz performance was better, managing to pip everything we've tested recently at all ranges, making the most of those three antennas.

We liked

While we couldn't seem to make the most of the fancy-antenna 450Mbps mode at 5GHz, importantly the Cisco Linksys E4200 put in good performances at both the 2.4GHz and 5GHz frequency ranges. Especially at 2.4GHz, it managed to keep ahead of the rest, even at 25m, with the same going for the 5GHz range. A solid no-nonsense interface provides solid reassurance.

We disliked

Not making the most of the 450Mbps connection is disappointing and since the cheaper the ASUS RT-N56U outperforms it while offering the same features, it's also hard to recommend. The flawed installation doesn't help things either.

Final word:

All-in-all the Cisco Linksys E4200 is a potentially lightning-fast 5GHz router that doesn't seem to make the most of its expensive abilities.

The Linksys E4200 is a powerful simultaneous dual-band Wireless-N router optimized for maximum wireless experience. A built-in USB port and UPnP media server lets you stream HD videos seamlessly directly from your router to your wireless devices. Share files with other computers wirelessly, with network speeds of up to 450 Mbps. Maximize gaming performance with the router's 4 Gigabit ports. Plus, the latest version of Cisco Connect software gets you set up in a few simple steps and offers powerful tools for managing your wireless network.